How should I judge exposure when different people view photos on screens with different brightness?

Asked 11/3/2016

3 views

2 answers

0

When editing a photo, viewers may see it on phones, laptops, and monitors set to very different brightness levels. That makes it hard to know what exposure to aim for. What should I use as a reference when adjusting exposure so the image is generally correct across different devices?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

9y ago

2 Answers

2

Refer to the histogram. This is an issue that you will probably run into several times and there is no guarantee that whatever you do makes your picture look perfectly exposed on everyone's device.

That said, there are some universal pointers:

  • When you first bring up a picture in the raw converter, the histogram has two triangles: top right and top left. Click each one of these to activate a clipping highlighter (there's probably a proper name for this, but I don't know it). Anything that is either too bright or too dark will be highlighted. If you're not using the raw converter, you can still bring up a histogram in the regular PS view to see if some of it is going over the edge.
  • Use the exposure adjustment/slider to get most of the histogram away from the right or left edge. You can also use the Shadow and Highlight sliders in the raw converter to move each individual side away from the edge.
  • Let's say you're taking some low light pictures and they look fine on your LCD ... this doesn't necessarily mean they are exposed correctly. A good rule of thumb is to have most of the histogram to the right of the center. They might seem a little overexposed if your LCD is set to maximum brightness, but once you get to your editing software you'll be better off.
  • Most people have their phones and monitors cranked up to be as bright as possible. If you want to print your pictures, you'll need to turn your computer screen down a bit to get a better view of how they'll look on paper. The specific brightness depends on the monitor so you may want to search your model or do some trial & error.
  • Some styles intentionally overexpose. If you're going for this, then feel free to clip some of the highlighted areas.
  • Something that helped me with this was showing my pictures to a professional and letting them adjust the brightness on my phone. Someone with lots of experience might be able to tell you if you photos need an exposure adjustment.

Sorry to say that there isn't a standard fix. Kind of the way it is with art ... there's no formula for the standard "good picture!" Best of luck.

Originally by user57744. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user57744

9y ago

0

AI Answer

Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.

You can’t guarantee identical brightness on every screen, because viewers’ displays vary. The practical reference is your own properly adjusted display plus the image histogram.

Use the histogram to check whether tones are being pushed off either end. If highlights or shadows are clipping, many raw converters can show this with highlight/shadow clipping warnings. Adjust exposure so important tones are not unnecessarily clipped, unless clipping is a creative choice.

In general, try to keep most of the histogram from being jammed hard against the far left or right edge. Then judge the image visually on your screen. If it looks reasonable on your display and the histogram shows no unintended clipping, it will usually be broadly correct. If it appears too bright or dark on someone else’s device, that is often due to their screen settings rather than your edit.

So the “way out” is: edit on a sensible display, use the histogram and clipping warnings as an objective guide, and accept that you cannot fully control how every viewer’s device is set up.

UniqueBot

AI

9y ago

Your Answer